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365 AppsApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2025-24075

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-03-11
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Stack-based buffer overflow in Microsoft Office Excel allows an unauthorized attacker to execute code locally.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

A stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in Microsoft Office Excel that allows an unauthorized attacker to execute code locally. The vulnerability involves overflowing a buffer on the stack, which can overwrite return addresses or adjacent memory, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution with the current user's privileges.

MitigationApply Microsoft security updates for Excel when released; avoid opening Excel files from untrusted or unknown sources; enable Windows Defender or endpoint protection features that can detect exploit attempts.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
365 AppsApplication
Affected:all versions
ExcelApplication
Affected:= 2016
OfficeApplication
Affected:= 2019
Office Long Term Servicing ChannelApplication
Affected:= 2021= 2024
Office Online ServerApplication
Affected:all versions

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Confirm Excel installation
    Check for Excel.exe in typical installation paths: %ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Office\root\Office16 (or Office15/14 depending on version), or %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Office\root\Office16. Also check registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\EXCEL.EXE
    Affected if Excel is not installed on the system, the vulnerability does not apply
  2. Retrieve installed Excel version
    Open Excel, go to File > Account > About Excel, or run 'winword /?' (for Office apps) or check registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\Configuration or HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\[version]\Excel\InstallRoot\Version (where [version] is 16.0 for Office 2016+, 15.0 for Office 2013, 14.0 for Office 2010)
    Affected if Cannot determine Excel version - further manual investigation needed
  3. Compare version against affected ranges
    Match your installed version number against the affected products: Microsoft 365 Apps (any version), Excel 2016, Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021, Office LTSC 2024, Office Online Server (any version). For Office 365/ Microsoft 365, check the update channel and build number via File > Account > Update Options > View Updates
    Affected if Installed Excel version is one of: any Microsoft 365 Apps version, Excel 2016, Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021, Office LTSC 2024, or any Office Online Server version - the system is potentially affected
  4. Check if Excel file handling is used
    The buffer overflow triggers when parsing specially crafted Excel files (.xlsx, .xls, .xlsm). Review recent Excel file opens from email attachments, downloads, or network shares. Check Windows Event Viewer for crash events related to Excel (Application logs with Event Source: Microsoft Excel)
    Affected if Excel is actively used to open workbook files - the vulnerability could be triggered
  5. Identify exposure to untrusted files
    Audit recent Excel files opened by the user. Check Outlook email attachments, Downloads folder, and network shares for Excel files from external/untrusted sources. Review endpoint detection logs if Windows Defender or EDR is enabled
    Affected if Users routinely open Excel files from untrusted or unknown sources - exploit risk is higher

A system is affected if Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office (with Excel component), Microsoft 365 Apps, or Microsoft Office Online Server is installed, regardless of specific version within the listed ranges.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply Microsoft security updates for Excel when released; avoid opening Excel files from untrusted or unknown sources; enable Windows Defender or endpoint protection features that can detect exploit attempts.

Fix this in 365 Apps Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-24075 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data